Bean-sorting machine



Nov. 10 [925. 1,560,863

A. ROCHELEAU BEAN som'mq MACHINE Filed A ril 5, 1922 I INVENTOR 7 2 AV/50010 fiocfie/ea u.

' .4 ORNEY' Patented Nov. 10, 1925.

res-area ALrHonso ROGHELEAU, or s A GINA w; nicnrean Assienon or one-HALF to sa E.

wALooTnoF SAGINAW, MICHIGAN. V

IBEAN-SORTING MAcH'iN'EQj i Application filed April 5, 1922. serial mismsas.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that LALrHoNso ROCHELEAU, a, citizen of the United States,'residing at Saginaw, in the county of Saginaw and State of Michigan, have invented eer'tain new and useful Improvements in' Bean'- Sorting Machines; and I do hereby declare,

the following to be a full, clear, andlex'a'c't description of the invention, such as will enable others. skilled in the-art to which it appertains to make and use the same. This invention relates to bean sorting machines andrelates more particularly to improvements in bean sorters ofthe revolving roller typev in which two rollers placedside by side and revolving in opposite directions receive the beans to be cleaned between them, the smootlrand properly shaped, or good beans, traveling along the groove between the rollers, and dropping from the ends of the rollers into hoppers, while the rough or defectively shaped and split beansare seized by the rollers, passed down between them and delivered into a separate hopper. Y

My improvement relatesmore particularly to the construction and arrangement ofthe rollers and to the means 'for feeding the beans to them, whereby the objects of my invention are attained. I

These objects are, first, to provide a roller construction that will enable the entire length of the roll assembly to be effectively utilized as sorting or picking surfaces, instead of having one end'only of a long roller effective torthat purpose, as has here tofore been common.

A further object is to provide an improved means for feeding beans to the] rollers, whereby maximum production may be obtained with a minimum number of rollers.

With these and certain other objects in view which will appear later in the specification, my invention comprises the devices described and claimed and the equivalents thereof,

In the drawings, Fig. l i's a perspective view, broken away in part, showing the beanfeeding device, the rolls, and the chutes for the separated product, the parts being shown in the drawings as separated one above the other for the sake of clearness.

Fig. 2 is-a part transverse ti n n th line 22 of Fig. 3,

Fig. 3 is a central vertical section, partly broken away, of the parts shown-in Fig. 2 i

As is clearly shown in the drawings,1, 1 indicate the" usual parallel- 'downwardly inclined roller shafts, which inaybe driven in 'any'suitablemanner, and-2, 2 is afplurality ofpairs of short sectional rolls,-the' sections spaced apart lengthwise the shafts 1, 1; Each pair of short "rollersect-ion's ispro vided with an independent feed spout, as '3,

3, these spoutsb'eing preferably rectangular I holes formed in a plate or board '4; located just above the top surfaces of the rolls;

A plurality of shut-0E -gates "5,l 5,.i-con- I nected together by a frame 6 and 'ea'ch provided with a circular hole? is arranged to open or close feed spouts 3, 3 simultaneously.

8 is a movable hopper bottom formed with an elongated slot 9 adapted to registerwith' the feed spouts 3-, 3 and with the holes 7 in gates 5 when themachine is'feedinga- These elongated slots 9 may receive only one or two beans at a time from-the hopper and: deliver the beans one at a time into the holes-7 of the gates 5 when the hopper bottom is vibrated by means of a suitably actuated arm 10, or its equivalent. I A

Beneath the pairs of rollers on'shaft l, -1

are boXesor chutes 11, '11-, there being one box for each pair of rolls. Each. box 11- opens into a trough 12 below and this trough in turn communicates with a spout 131150 carry away the" defective beans.

- The chutes 11 do-Iiot eXtend'underthe endwise spaces between the rolls, but beans delivered from the ends i of each'roll sec-. tion drop freely'intoa passageway 15, which communicates with a Spout 16 for-the delivery of good beans. 1

Each'pair of rolls 2, 2 'is only'of'suiiicient length to properly separate the'good beans from detective beans when beans are fed to the rolls through the spouts 3, 3 one at a time, although they may be tedvery rapidly one after theother.

p I I'havefound in practice thatit isvess'enitial to feed only one bean at: aftime to ;;a

rapidly revolving pair of rolls, but that the rate of feed may be so fast that the beans appear to be delivered to the rolls in almost a continuous stream.

As each bean drops through its feed spout 3, 3, it is directedforwardly, that is, toward I the high end of the bank of rolls, and it strikes exactly between the two .roll surfaces, which are traveling at high :speed toward each other. If the bean is smooth, it lands between the rolls and on account of the slight upwarddire'ctionwhich has been imparted to it, it hesitates "for-an insta-nt between the rolls and then if roughit is pu led between the surfaces and delivered into one of the chutes 4.11. :If tthesurfaces of the bean is smooth and perfect it immediately travels :the .-leng.th of the short "roll anddropsoff theeend ,intothepassagcway 15. 7 By feeding to each pairof roll-sections, only'one bean :at a time and operathigvthe rolls vat highspeed, I yfind that very short vrolils, as. 2, 2, may 'be employed because @the 1 .selectiontakes place almost instantly; beans of rough or. irregular: surfaces zgoingf between therolls "'verlylrapidly hand the good beans whichare;left-aredeliyeredinto passageway l5 .immedi-atelyuupon: the :removalofthe: de- Ifective beans; I have found ?that :a :total length of; approximately twoiinches is: ample fan each aroll: section.

.There :may be-131$ @many short :rolla sections aasidesiredwon eacl1:s'h-aft,'but eahroll section Lhas its individual @feed and :its ividu a1 delivery vspouts .jfor gigood .';beans :and idefec-tive :beans.

In :the construction shown :in :Fig..' l, I ::have illnstna-tedr Eforur such :roll :sectio-ns ar- .-1:anged sonparallelishafts. It is fQbV-lOuS' that walthongh the beans; are :fed to: 5651611 2 roll =secitionone at a .ti rne, :yet ,by employing, say, 1 four or "more :snch sections preferably :01]

i one pair of sha fts,:.the capacity of the machine is multiplied bythe. number-of; pairs 10f; rollsections. :By vthe arrangement above described, 1 :terferencegor cloggiingreansed byfeeding sevenal-ubeans alongside; of each 1 'otherns avoidce'd :and rthe .iactual hourly :capacity :0f the -machine is :greatly increased "without ccreasiiazgaeitherz its-a-sizenor its cost. The actronracycofthe work isggreatlyiinproved over A that previously :rattained, was mo i-beam, While con athe "live troll ezsurliace :is shit :by :-=another bean :thereby a'impropenly split athrongh. As is well known, only thesslightestionoh :nponzza: hean whilecon therrevolving ssm'iface 21s meqnired :zto pntzitssbetween the; I'OllSaza'Iid iathen'cerintosthefdiscardespont.

1 hacezshownsandadescribedttheiin-- vacation?aseappilied"particmarlyatotthe cleanmg of beans, it is equallyeaidapted toxsorting 10f zany JOthBli'i materiazlscor mrticleswhere IEthGSQ'; sarticles having cregnlar ss'hape aand 1,so0,ses

smooth surfaces have to be separated from those having rough surfaces and irregular shape.

beans one-at 1a, timebetween :the ends ofeach .pairof short roll;sections,:acollecting spout beneath :each'pair ofgroll sections adapted, to receive material; passed between: the peripheries ,of-themolls, and Ia spout beneath the spaced ends-ofeach pair of-roll sections to- ;receivelmaterial passed lengthwise said sections.

2. .ln a machine of the class described,.a pair of parallel shafts, a plurality ofrapidly revolvablesshort rollsections on each shaft, the ends ofrsuccessive sections spaced apart lengthwise :to :form f passageways :for escape of:.material between -;said ;-ends, and means adaptedto feed beansesubstantially. oneata time? to-l-each pa'ir of :SlflOlTtilfOll. sections.

3. In amachine of the class described, a pair-10f parallel shafts, a: plurality of revolv "sable-short roll sect-ions on-each--shaft,.-the' ends of successive sections spaced ,apart ilengjthwise to form passagewaysfor :escape ofzmaterialrbetween said: ends, means adapted to feed. beans one at a time to'each pair =of short ..roll sect-ions and a plurality of -spouts, onelocated beneathzthe end of: each :pair .of-roll sections, .to receive material dezli-vered between the spaced ends of said sections, for the purposes-setforth. I

4.. In a; machine of '1 the class described, a :pair: of parallel inclined shafts, 5a 2 plurality tof :short y-ieldingssn-rfaced roll sections on ---eachashaft,. the-ends; of? successive, sections .011

"each ,shaft spacedwapart, a collecting spo-ut beneath each pair: of roll sections, a spout beneath the spaced ends of each pair ofn-roll sections, and meansadapted vto :vfeed beans ,rapidlysone at a, time to one-endof eachof -saidtpairsi ofshortzroll sectlons.

5. A bean i sort-111g I machine characterized cbyzpairs; of: sorting, rolls: eachccornprising a apnmla of short rollsections spaced apart .dengfihwise and:naeans-zfori feeding material 1011-iffinfielldifDfzQitOhwOf ssaid ,paiats :of roll sections, for the purposes set forth.

testimony whereo fvLafiix signature.

AAL-cP-HQNSOERQCHELEAU. 

